Ilia Topuria recently conveyed overwhelming confidence in his preparation for the upcoming championship showdown against Max Holloway. 'El Matador' is gearing up for his first featherweight title defense against 'Blessed' in the headlining bout of UFC 308, set to take place on Oct. 26 at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
Topuria’s training camp is well underway as he prepares for what is arguably one of the most pivotal fights of his career to date. At a recent media interaction during the WOW MMA press conference, the 27-year-old German-born Georgian was asked to share details about his approach to the highly anticipated bout.
'El Matador' radiated self-assurance while discussing his training and formidable striking power. He humorously suggested that featherweight contenders might need helmets to protect themselves from his devastating knockout power:
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"Better than ever. I really wouldn't want to be in someone else's shoes, believe me. I've prepared very, very hard. I'm at that point right now in my weight class, and a good motorcycle helmet is needed because if not, there is no solution."
Check out Ilia Topuria's comments below (translated from Spanish):
Check out the full press conference below:
Topuria claimed the 145-pound title with a stunning second-round knockout of Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 298 in February. He remains undefeated in his 15-fight professional career, with eight of those victories coming by submission.
Meanwhile, 'Blessed' is set for his third attempt at recapturing the featherweight title, which he initially lost to Volkanovski at UFC 245 in December 2019, followed by two unsuccessful rematches. He is coming off a last-second knockout of Justin Gaethje to secure the BMF title in a lightweight bout at UFC 300 this past April.
Tim Welch breaks down how Max Holloway could overcome Ilia Topuria at UFC 308
During a recent episode of the Red Hawk Recap podcast, Sean O'Malley's coach, Tim Welch, weighed in on the upcoming Ilia Topuria vs. Max Holloway title clash at UFC 308.
While Welch praised Topuria's sharp striking abilities, he suggested that Holloway could dethrone the reigning featherweight champion by effectively utilizing his reach advantage and staying cautious throughout the fight:
"I watched Topuria vs. Bryce Mitchell again, and he’s so f**king good. His shoulders are so high; he’s so good at coming close. If you throw a punch, and you’re not bringing it back to your face, he’s so good at counter-punching. I mean, he’s pretty flat-footed, and he’s pretty stationary, but he is not the tallest guy. I would be zero percent surprised if Max Holloway came out, found his range, got started first, made Topuria miss a lot, and Max got it done."
Check out Tim Welch's comments below (27:20):